Brooklyn trio raises $10 million for startup that wants to help open-source developers get paid
Sam Ragsdale, Ryan Sproule, and Mason Hall have raised $10 million in a seed funding round co-led by Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto fund and Blockchain Capital.
Sam Ragsdale
Inside the Domino Sugar Refinery in Brooklyn, a 19th century landmark perched on the banks of the East River, three engineers have transformed 3,000 square feet of the former factory into a workshop housing their new startup, Merit Systems.
Sam Ragsdale, Ryan Sproule and Mason Hall are five months into creating Merit, which they hope will solve a longstanding challenge in software: rewarding open-source developers. On Thursday, Merit announced it’s raised $10 million in a seed funding round co-led by Andreessen Horowitz’s crypto fund and Blockchain Capital.
Sproule says Merit is trying to address the “attribution problem” in software development. In the world of open source, which underpins more than 97% of the apps consumers use on a daily basis, tech giants and independent programmers alike contribute to products that are freely available for anyone to access and improve.
“Because the price is zero, and there is no attribution to the people that created it, there is not a very sustainable set of economics to keep it alive,” said Ragsdale, Merit’s CEO, who previously spent three years at Andreessen Horowitz and before that worked as a software engineer at Google.
Substantial amounts of open-source code can be found in artificial intelligence frameworks, databases, web browsers and mobile operating systems. Some of the best known open-source projects include Android (now owned by Google), GitHub (acquired by Microsoft) and Apache Spark, data analytics technology at the heart of Databricks.
While many companies have been able to commercialize versions of open-source software or sell support and services as a way to generate revenue, there’s no consistent model for rewarding individuals or small groups of contributors who often do valuable work.
Merit Systems CTO Ryan Sproule working at the whiteboard at the company headquarters in the Domino Sugar Factory.
Sam Ragsdale
Chris Dixon, managing partner of Andreessen’s crypto fund, said that open source is “poorly funded and too reliant on altruistic contributions.”
In comments he’s posting on X, Dixon wrote that Merit “is building a protocol that properly attributes and rewards contributors proportionally to the value they create.”
Ragsdale, who worked with Dixon at the venture firm, first met Sproule as an undergraduate at Washington University in St. Louis. Sproule went on to crypto-focused firm Blockchain Capital in San Francisco, and the pair then teamed up with Hall, who was also on Andreessen’s crypto team.
The project is still in development, even as the company says it’s obtained a post-funding valuation of $55.5 million. Most of its current users are friends and acquaintances of the founders. Merit expects to roll out a broader release by the end of February after gathering and incorporating feedback from its early testers.
Sproule, Merit’s CTO and a former Amazon Web Services engineer, says the startup has the opportunity to sit “in the middle,” connecting software buyers and users with the actual creators of the technology.
“If you can solve this attribution problem, you can essentially get users to pay directly for the software people build,” he said.
Three entrepreneurs in a sugar factory
The Williamsburg community in the Brooklyn borough of New York, where the small Merit team is based, has been transformed over the past few decades from a former industrial district, first into a vibrant arts and music center and more recently into an upscale neighborhood filled with new high-rise apartment buildings and luxury shops.
But the old Domino factory, two blocks north of the Williamsburg Bridge, remains a relic of the past. The refinery was the last operating industrial facility on the waterfront before closing in 2004.
After years of neglect, the building has been reimagined as a hub for modern innovation, with panoramic views of Manhattan visible through the original brickwork. The facility opened as a modern office complex in 2023, and now offers carved-up startup space as well as full floors for bigger organizations.
Ragsdale says the building’s history is important to the startup’s story.
Merit Systems co-founders Ryan Sproule, Sam Ragsdale, and Mason Hall coding in their Brooklyn office.
Sam Ragsdale
The name Merit Systems is a “throwback to the companies of the ’60s or the ’70s, which had very industrial names that explain exactly what they do,” Ragsdale said. Merit is meant to be a straightforward description of the company’s mission.
There’s also a coveted view of Manhattan.
“You can see the skyline through the old brick in the windows,” Ragsdale said.
Inside the office, there are four desks and eight chairs. Whiteboards covered in notes and math equations fill the only corner of the office currently in use, while 3D printers from Ragsdale’s home produce prototypes, including the company’s tesseract logo.
“We’re definitely not using all 3,000 square feet,” said Ragsdale. “We’ll get there eventually.”
Merit plans to add seven new hires in the coming months and is specifically looking for people who want an in-person work culture.
“The idea flow between people when you’re sitting next to them is really important,” says Sproule. “We don’t really believe in the fully decentralized remote work model for an early-stage company.”
The Joint Office of Energy and Transportation’s Communities Taking Charge Accelerator has awarded $43.7 million to 25 innovative EV charging projects across the US.
The Communities Taking Charge Accelerator was launched on April 16, 2024, and the funding comes from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
The three main goals of the funding are to expand access to electrified mobility options for folks who don’t have access to home charging, accelerate opportunities for fleet electrification, and improve and advance managed charging systems to mitigate impacts and optimize usage of the grid.
On January 15, 25 project awardees were announced that impact 23 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. Challenges that the projects will address include:
Solving for no-home charging. Not everyone has a driveway or garage to charge their EVs, e-bikes, or scooters. Projects are testing creative solutions like curbside chargers, multifamily charging setups, and shared community micromobility hubs. They also look at everything from rate design to building multimodal charging hubs, making it easier for people in apartments or urban areas to power up.
In this project, for example, Voltpost will install lamppost EV chargers in San Francisco using existing infrastructure.
Electrifying fleets for people and goods. Think of shared rides, carpool services, and last-mile delivery trucks. Electrifying these types of light- and medium-duty fleets could have a huge impact on reducing emissions. These projects aim to figure out how to charge fleets more efficiently, whether they’re transporting people or goods. It’s all about improving community access to clean transportation options while keeping operations smooth for fleet operators.
The Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s project allows Metro Bike Share to increase access to electric bikes by implementing electrified stations with in-dock charging.
Managed charging for clean reliable energy. Managed charging is about coordinating when and how EVs charge to avoid grid strain and use renewable energy whenever possible. Projects in this area are working on open-source tools and standards to make managed charging tech accessible and easy to integrate into today’s energy systems.
The University of Alabama is running a project to develop and implement an end-to-end multi-stakeholder EV charging management framework to enhance grid reliability.
Gabe Klein, executive director of the Joint Office, said, “This investment aims to expand transportation and energy infrastructure to meet the current and anticipated demands – from how people charge and use shared vehicle fleets including e-bikes around transit hubs to a new model for more affordable multifamily housing charging – advancing a more holistic energy and transportation ecosystem.”
Electrek’s Take
The Biden administration has been rapidly doling out funds to clean energy and EV projects, and it’s great to see the Communities Taking Charge Accelerator funds reach its recipients at the 11th hour. There are some great projects, which you can check out here.
Read more: Rivian powers Michigan’s first federally funded NEVI EV fast charger
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Tesla announced on X that it is working on a new way to keep the cameras clean on the Cybertruck.
Hopefully, it will make its way to other Tesla vehicles because it is a common problem with the performance of its advanced driver assist systems (ADAS).
When driving using Tesla’s Autopilot or Full Self-Driving (Supervised) suite of driver-assist features, you will often get an alert that the system might not work properly because “one or more cameras are obstructed” due to dirt or snow coming off the road and into the lenses.
For Cybertruck, that’s an even problem because the rear-view camera is the only way to look behind the vehicle when the tonneau cover is up.
It led to some owners complaining that they need to remember to clean the camera at the back of the truck almost every time they use it, especially in the winter.
Tesla responded to some of those comments through its ‘Tesla AI’ account on X. One owner specifically asked if Tesla is planning a solution for when it achieves “unsupervised self-driving” because it then can’t expect someone to always be able to clean the cameras and Tesla responded:
On a more serious note, a more comprehensive cleaning solution is being worked on.
Tesla didn’t elaborate on the solution or when it would be available.
Back in 2019, we reported on Tesla applying for a patent on technology “to use laser beams to clean debris off its cars automatically.” It mused that it could be used to clean cameras, but nothing came out of the patent application.
Tesla says that it plans to achieve unsupervised self-driving capability in California and Texas around Q2 2025, but the latest data makes this sound extremely unlikely, to say the least.
Electrek’s Take
I doubt that it will be lasers, though it would be cool, but there’s undoubtedly a need for a solution.
In my own experience with FSD in the Quebec winter, I get alerts of obstructed cameras literally every other drive.
Tesla has already implemented heaters, which help some, but other than the front-facing cameras, which benefit from the windshield wipers, there’s a need for more.
What’s interesting here is Tesla basically admits that for unsupervised self-driving, which was part of the question it answered, it needs to add extra hardware to make it work.
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Buy or lease the new 2025 IONIQ 5, and Hyundai will give you a free ChargePoint Level 2 EV charger. Or, you can choose a $400 charging credit. That’s a pretty sweet deal, with leases starting as low as $199 per month. Here’s how you can snag the offer.
2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 now comes with a free EV charger
Last September, Hyundai introduced the program, offering a free ChargePoint L2 Home Flex Charger for new IONIQ 5, IONIQ 6, and Kona Electric customers.
After a positive response, the company expanded the program through the end of 2024. Now, Hyundai is offering a free EV charger promo for those who buy or lease the new 2025 IONIQ 5.
Hyundai unveiled the 2025 IONIQ in September. It now has more range, a sleek new design, and it even comes with an NACS port for charging at Tesla Superchargers. Hyundai wants to make it even easier for you to go electric by offering a free home charger.
Starting January 1, 2025, you can receive a free home charger if you purchase or lease a new 2025 IONIQ 5. If you already have a home charger, you can opt for a $400 credit to use at public ChargePoint, EVgo, and Shell Recharge chargers.
Hyundai will provide the charger through its Hyundai Home Marketplace and help you schedule installation. If you choose the charging credit, you can redeem it using the ChargePoint mobile app.
You have 60 days from the purchase or lease date to choose the home EV charger or $400 public charging credit. To redeem the offer, you must create a profile on Hyundai Home Marketplace.
After you create a profile, you can redeem the home charger public credit by clicking the “Find Offer” button at the bottom of the page. It will ask you a few questions before you can select the option.
Once you redeem it, Electrum will email you within five business days with a coupon code. Installation costs are not included in the offer.
| 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 Trim | EV Powertrain | Driving Range (miles) | Starting Price* |
| IONIQ 5 SE RWD Standard Range | 168-horsepower rear motor | 245 | $42,500 |
| IONIQ 5 SE RWD | 225-horsepower rear motor | 318 | $46,550 |
| IONIQ 5 SEL RWD | 225-horsepower rear motor | 318 | $49,500 |
| IONIQ 5 Limited RWD | 225-horsepower rear motor | 318 | $54,200 |
| IONIQ 5 SE Dual Motor AWD | 320-horsepower dual motor | 290 | $50,050 |
| IONIQ 5 SEL Dual Motor AWD | 320-horsepower dual motor | 290 | $53,000 |
| IONIQ 5 XRT Dual Motor AWD | 320 horsepower dual motor | 259 | $55,400 |
| IONIQ 5 Limited Dual Motor AWD | 320-horsepower dual motor | 269 | $58,100 |
Hyundai’s 2025 IONIQ 5 starts at $43,975. The longer range model, with up to 318 miles range, starts at $46,550. With the potential $7,500 EV tax credit, prices could drop to under $36,500.
With lease prices starting as low as $199 per month, Hyundai’s new IONIQ 5 is hard to pass up. You can use our link to find deals on the 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 at a dealer near you today.
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